Upgrades on Thompson Farm Fencing

Upgrades have been made at Terry Thompson's farm where horses escaped several times last week.

For three days in a row, Muskingum County Sheriff's Deputies were called to the Thompson farm to gather up and return the loose animals. Muskingum County Sheriff Matt Lutz said farm hands made changes to the fencing, to help prevent it from happening again.

"They had gone around and found a couple spots in the fence that the horses... They thought the horses were getting out on. So they were installing an electrical strand, which is typical in Muskingum County, and also putting some barbed wire up so that that would prevent the horses from getting back out," said Sheriff Lutz.

Sheriff Lutz said the Thompson farm is not the only area in the county where animals tend to escape. But that the fencing upgrades should do the trick.

"I think that's going to definitely help. We haven't had any other complaints since then. So, hopefully that takes care of the problem. And like I say, we run into this in our county at different locations due to weather, due to just the fence wearing out."

Sheriff Lutz said electrical fencing is quite common on farms in Muskingum County.

Two surviving leopards, two primates and a bear were returned to Marion Thompson this month. That left some people concerned because nothing in Ohio law allows state officials to check on the animals' welfare or require improvements to the conditions in which they’re kept.